KR102414052B1 - Wireless control system and battery pack including the same - Google Patents

Abstract

A wireless control system and a battery pack including the same are provided. The wireless control system is for wirelessly collecting and managing first to N-th battery information indicating states of the first to N-th battery modules. The radio control system includes: a master configured to wirelessly transmit a first command packet; and first to N-th slaves to which first to N-th IDs are sequentially assigned in advance. When receiving the first command packet, the first slave generates first battery information indicating the state of the first battery module, and sends a first response packet including the first ID and the first battery information. configured to transmit wirelessly. When the k+1th slave receives the first command packet, it generates k+1th battery information indicating the state of the k+1th battery module, and generates the k+1th battery information until an assigned time slot is reached. and waits for reception of the kth response packet from the kth slave, and then wirelessly transmits the k+1th response packet. When the k+1th slave succeeds in receiving the kth response packet, the k+1th response packet includes the kth ID, the kth battery information, the k+1th ID, and the k+1th response packet. Includes battery information. N is a natural number of 2 or more, and k is a natural number of 1 or more and N-1 or less.

Description

Wireless control system and battery pack including same

The present invention relates to a wireless control system including a master and a plurality of slaves, and to a battery pack including the wireless control system.

Recently, as the demand for portable electronic products such as laptops, video cameras, and mobile phones has rapidly increased, and the development of electric vehicles, energy storage batteries, robots, satellites, etc. is in full swing, high-performance batteries that can be repeatedly charged and discharged have been developed. Research is being actively conducted.

Currently commercialized batteries include nickel-cadmium batteries, nickel-hydrogen batteries, nickel-zinc batteries, and lithium batteries. It is in the spotlight because of its low energy density and high energy density.

A battery pack for a device requiring high-capacity and high voltage, such as an electric vehicle, typically includes a plurality of battery modules connected in series to each other. In order to individually and efficiently manage the states of a plurality of battery modules, a control system having a multi-slave system is disclosed. A control system having a multi-slave system includes a plurality of slaves for monitoring the state of each battery module and a master for integrally controlling the plurality of slaves.

However, when the master and the plurality of slaves perform wireless communication with each other, the wireless connection between the master and at least one slave may be undesirably cut off due to external noise.

The present invention has been devised to solve the above problems, and not only battery information of a battery module to which at least one slave is coupled to itself, but also other battery information from other slaves assigned with an ID higher than itself. An object of the present invention is to provide a wireless control system capable of wirelessly collecting battery information indicating the state of each of a plurality of battery modules by the master by wirelessly forwarding to the master, and a battery pack and method including the same.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention may be understood by the following description, and will become more clearly understood by the examples of the present invention. In addition, it will be readily apparent that the objects and advantages of the present invention can be realized by means and combinations thereof indicated in the claims.

Various embodiments of the present invention for achieving the above object are as follows.

A wireless control system according to an aspect of the present invention is for wirelessly collecting and managing first to N-th battery information indicating states of the first to N-th battery modules. The radio control system includes: a master configured to wirelessly transmit a first command packet; and first to N-th slaves to which first to N-th IDs are sequentially assigned in advance. When receiving the first command packet, the first slave generates first battery information indicating the state of the first battery module, and sends a first response packet including the first ID and the first battery information. configured to transmit wirelessly. When the k+1th slave receives the first command packet, it generates k+1th battery information indicating the state of the k+1th battery module, and generates the k+1th battery information until an assigned time slot is reached. and waits for reception of the kth response packet from the kth slave, and then wirelessly transmits the k+1th response packet. When the k+1th slave succeeds in receiving the kth response packet, the k+1th response packet includes the kth ID, the kth battery information, the k+1th ID, and the k+1th response packet. Includes battery information. N is a natural number of 2 or more, and k is a natural number of 1 or more and N-1 or less.

The N-th slave may be configured to wirelessly retransmit the N-th response packet one or more times after wirelessly transmitting the N-th response packet.

The N-1 th slave may be configured to wirelessly transmit an additional response packet when receiving the N-th response packet after the N-1 th response packet is wirelessly transmitted. The additional response packet may include the Nth ID and the Nth battery information.

When the k+1th slave fails to receive the kth response packet, the k+1th response packet includes the k+1th ID and the k+1th battery information, the kth ID and The kth battery information may not be included.

The master sets each slave to which an ID included in each response packet received after the first command packet is wirelessly transmitted as a first group, while setting the remaining slaves not set as the first group as a second group It can be configured to set as a group.

The master may be configured to wirelessly transmit a second command packet when at least one of the first to N-th slaves is set as the second group. The second command packet may include IDs of all slaves set in the second group.

The master may be configured to wirelessly transmit the first command packet at a first signal strength and wirelessly transmit the second command packet at a first amplified signal strength. The first amplified signal strength may be greater than the first signal strength.

The k+1th slave may be configured to wirelessly retransmit the k+1th response packet when the k+1th ID is included in the second command packet.

The k+1th slave is configured to determine the relative rank of the k+1th ID among all IDs included in the second command packet when the k+1th ID is included in the second command packet. can The k+1th slave may be configured to wirelessly retransmit the k+1th response packet in a time slot assigned to the relative priority of the k+1th ID.

A battery pack according to another aspect of the present invention includes the wireless control system.

In the method according to another aspect of the present invention, the first to N-th battery information indicating the state of the first to N-th battery modules from the first to N-th slaves to which the master has sequentially assigned the first to N-th IDs. to collect wirelessly. The method may include: wirelessly transmitting, by the master, a first command packet to the first to Nth slaves; generating the first battery information when the first slave receives the first command packet, and wirelessly transmitting a first response packet including the first ID and the first battery information; and when the k+1th slave receives the first command packet, the k+1th battery information is generated, and the k-th response packet from the kth slave is generated until the time slot assigned to it is reached. and waiting for reception, and then wirelessly transmitting a k+1th response packet. When the k+1th slave succeeds in receiving the kth response packet, the k+1th response packet includes the kth ID, the kth battery information, the k+1 ID, and the k+1th response packet. Includes battery information. N is a natural number of 2 or more, and k is a natural number of 1 or more and N-1 or less.

The method may further include, after the N-th slave wirelessly transmits the N-th response packet, wirelessly retransmitting the N-th response packet one or more times.

The method may further include, when the N-1 th slave receives the N-th response packet after the N-1 th response packet is wirelessly transmitted, wirelessly transmitting an additional response packet. The additional response packet may include the Nth ID and the Nth battery information.

According to at least one of the embodiments of the present invention, at least one slave transmits not only battery information of the battery module to which it is coupled, but also other battery information from other slaves assigned with an ID higher than itself to the master wirelessly. can be forwarded.

In addition, according to at least one of the embodiments of the present invention, the master may select only the slaves that have failed in the wireless connection with itself from among all the slaves and retry the wireless connection.

Further, according to at least one of the embodiments of the present invention, when the wireless connection between the master and the at least one slave fails, at least one of the master and the slave has a signal strength greater than that in a normal case (ie, when a wireless connection is made) to wirelessly transmit a signal to the other party.

As a result, the master can wirelessly collect battery information indicating the state of each of the plurality of battery modules with high reliability.

Effects of the present invention are not limited to the effects mentioned above, and other effects not mentioned will be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the description of the claims.

The following drawings attached to this specification illustrate preferred embodiments of the present invention, and serve to further understand the technical spirit of the present invention together with the detailed description of the present invention to be described later, so that the present invention is described in such drawings should not be construed as being limited only to
1 is a diagram exemplarily showing the configuration of a battery pack including a wireless control system.
FIG. 2 is a diagram exemplarily showing detailed configurations of a master and a slave of FIG. 1 .
FIG. 3 is an exemplary timing chart for explaining a process in which the master of FIG. 1 wirelessly collects response packets from a plurality of slaves.
FIG. 4 is another exemplary timing chart for explaining a process in which the master of FIG. 1 wirelessly collects response packets from a plurality of slaves.
5 is a flowchart illustrating a method for a master to wirelessly collect response packets from a plurality of slaves according to a first embodiment of the present invention.
6 is a flowchart illustrating a method for a master to wirelessly collect response packets from a plurality of slaves according to a second embodiment of the present invention.
7 exemplarily shows a lookup table related to the second embodiment.
8 is a flowchart illustrating a method for a master to wirelessly collect response packets from a plurality of slaves according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Prior to this, the terms or words used in the present specification and claims should not be construed as being limited to conventional or dictionary meanings, and the inventor should properly understand the concept of the term in order to best describe his invention. Based on the principle that it can be defined, it should be interpreted as meaning and concept consistent with the technical idea of the present invention.

Accordingly, the embodiments described in this specification and the configurations shown in the drawings are only the most preferred embodiment of the present invention and do not represent all of the technical spirit of the present invention, so at the time of the present application, various It should be understood that there may be equivalents and variations.

In addition, in the description of the present invention, if it is determined that a detailed description of a related known configuration or function may obscure the gist of the present invention, the detailed description thereof will be omitted.

Terms including an ordinal number such as 1st, 2nd, etc. are used for the purpose of distinguishing any one of various components from the others, and are not used to limit the components by such terms.

Throughout the specification, when a part "includes" a certain element, it means that other elements may be further included, rather than excluding other elements, unless specifically stated otherwise. In addition, a term such as <control unit> described in the specification means a unit that processes at least one function or operation, which may be implemented as hardware or software, or a combination of hardware and software.

In addition, throughout the specification, when a part is "connected" with another part, it is not only "directly connected" but also "indirectly connected" with another element interposed therebetween. include

1 is a diagram exemplarily showing the configuration of a battery pack 10 including a wireless control system 30 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 1 , a battery pack 10 includes N battery modules 20 and a wireless control system 30 . N is a natural number greater than or equal to 2. In the drawings, for the purpose of classifying the N battery modules 20 , reference numerals 200_1 to 200_N are sequentially assigned to the N battery modules 20 . The battery pack 10 may be mounted on an electric vehicle and supply power required to drive an electric motor of the electric vehicle.

The N battery modules 20_1 to 20_N, where N is a natural number equal to or greater than 2) are connected in series or series-parallel to each other. Each battery module 20 includes at least one battery cell 21 .

The radio control system 30 includes a master 100 and N slaves 200 . In the drawing, for the purpose of classifying the N slaves 200 , symbols 200_1 to 200_N are sequentially assigned to the N slaves 200 .

The master 100 is configured to integrally control the battery pack 10 . Each of the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N is configured to perform wireless communication with the master 100 using its own ID previously allocated from the master 100 . The master 100 stores IDs previously allocated to the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N. ID is identification information for distinguishing the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N.

The master 100 may communicate with an external main controller (eg, ECU of an electric vehicle) through a wired network such as a control area network (CAN). The master 100 may include a master antenna MA, and may wirelessly communicate with each slave 200 through the master antenna MA.

The plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N are connected to the plurality of battery modules 20_1 to 20_N on a one-to-one basis. When i = 1 to N, the slave 200_i is configured to monitor the state (eg, voltage, current, and temperature) of the battery module 20_i. Power required for the operation of the slave 200_i may be supplied from the battery module 20_i.

The slave 200_i may also wirelessly transmit data indicating the monitored state of the battery module 20_i (hereinafter, also referred to as 'battery information') to the master 100 .

The master 100, based on the battery information from the slave 200_i, calculates SOC (state of charge), SOH (state of health), etc. of the battery module 20_i, or overvoltage of the battery module 20_i, Undervoltage, overcharge or overdischarge can be determined.

The plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N are disposed in different regions inside the battery pack 10 so that communication distances with the master 100 are different from each other. The communication distance between the slave 200_i and the master 100 may mean a linear distance between the antenna SA_i of the slave 200_i and the antenna MA of the master 100 . Hereinafter, it is assumed that the communication distance between the slave 200_i and the master 100 is shorter than the communication distance between the slave 200_i+1 and the master 100 . For example, referring to FIG. 1 , the antenna SA_i of the slave 200_i is disposed closer to the antenna MA of the master 100 than the antenna SA_i+1 of the slave 200_i+1. The antenna SA_i of the slave 200_i is disposed on the 'upstream side' of the antenna SA_i+1 of the slave 200_i+1, and the antenna SA_i+1 of the slave 200_i+1 is connected to the slave 200_i It can be said that it is disposed on the 'downstream side' of the antenna SA_i.

Hereinafter, it is assumed that a relatively high priority ID is allocated to a slave having a relatively short communication distance with the master 100 . For example, the ID of the slave 200_i has a higher priority than the ID of the slave 200_i+1.

The master 100 is configured to classify each of the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N into one of a first group and a second group at every predetermined period. The master 100 may scan a response packet from the second group during a waiting period after transmitting the command packet.

The slave 200 may be configured to wirelessly transmit a response packet as a response to the command packet to the master 100 when its ID is included in the command packet.

When the master 100 receives a response packet from a specific slave (eg, 200_2) belonging to the second group within a predetermined time after the command packet is transmitted, the master 100 removes the specific slave from the second group Classify into 1 group. On the other hand, when the master 100 does not receive a response packet from a specific slave belonging to the second group, the master 100 maintains the specific slave as the second group.

FIG. 2 is a diagram exemplarily showing detailed configurations of the master 100 and the slave 200 of FIG. 1 .

Referring to FIG. 2 , the master 100 includes an antenna MA, a wireless communication circuit 110 , and a control unit 120 . Power required for the operation of the master 100 may be supplied from at least one of the plurality of battery modules 20_1 to 20_N or an external power source.

The wireless communication circuit 110 is configured to wirelessly transmit a command packet to the slave 200 via the antenna MA. Further, the wireless communication circuit 110 is configured to receive a response packet from the slave 200 via the antenna MA.

The control unit 120 is operatively connected to the wireless communication circuit 110 . The controller 220 determines a request for at least one of the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N based on a signal (eg, indicating battery information) received through the antenna MA, and receives the request. A command packet including the indicated data may be wirelessly transmitted to at least one of the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N.

Control unit 120 hardware ASICs (application specific integrated circuits), DSPs (digital signal processors), DSPDs (digital signal processing devices), PLDs (programmable logic devices), FPGAs (field programmable gate arrays), microprocessors (microprocessors) ), and may be implemented using at least one of an electrical unit for performing other functions. A memory device may be embedded in the controller 120 , and as the memory device, for example, a RAM, a ROM, a register, a hard disk, an optical recording medium, or a magnetic recording medium may be used. The memory device may store, update, and/or erase a program including various control logic executed by the controller 120 and/or data generated when the control logic is executed.

The slave 200 includes an antenna SA, a sensing unit 210 , a wireless communication circuit 220 , and a control unit 230 .

The sensing unit 210 includes a voltage measuring circuit 211 and a temperature sensor 212 . The sensing unit 210 may further include a current sensor (not shown). The voltage measuring circuit 211 includes at least one voltage sensor.

The voltage measuring circuit 211 measures the module voltage of the battery module 20 . The module voltage is the voltage across the battery module 20 . The voltage measuring circuit 211 may further measure the cell voltage of each battery cell 21 included in the battery module 20 . The cell voltage is a voltage across both ends of the battery cell 21 . The voltage measuring circuit 211 transmits a voltage signal representing the module voltage and the cell 21 voltage to the controller 230 .

The temperature sensor 212 is disposed within a predetermined distance from the battery module 20 and transmits a temperature signal indicating the temperature of the battery module 20 to the controller 230 .

The current sensor is installed in the charging/discharging current path of the battery pack 10 , measures a current flowing during charging/discharging of the battery pack 10 , and transmits a current signal representing the measured current to the controller 230 .

The wireless communication circuit 220 is connected to the control unit 220 and the antenna SA. The wireless communication circuit 220 may be implemented in hardware using an RF System on Chip (SoC). The wireless communication circuit 220 may wirelessly transmit data to the master 100 or other slave 200, or wirelessly receive data from the master 100 or other slave 200 through the antenna SA. have.

The controller 230 may be operatively coupled to the sensing unit 210 and the wireless communication circuit 220 to individually control their respective operations. The controller 230 is hardware, ASICs (application specific integrated circuits), DSPs (digital signal processors), DSPDs (digital signal processing devices), PLDs (programmable logic devices), FPGAs (field programmable gate arrays), microprocessors ( microprocessors) and may be implemented using at least one of electrical units for performing other functions. A memory device may be embedded in the controller 230 , and as the memory device, for example, a RAM, ROM, register, hard disk, optical recording medium, or magnetic recording medium may be used. The memory device may store, update, and/or erase a program including various control logic executed by the controller 230 and/or data generated when the control logic is executed.

The wireless communication circuit 220 is configured to selectively execute at least one of predetermined functions in response to a signal from the master 100 or other slave 200 wirelessly received via the antenna SA.

When a certain signal is received through the antenna SA, the wireless communication circuit 220 may measure a signal strength of the received signal. When receiving a command packet from the master 100 through the antenna SA, the wireless communication circuit 220 may wirelessly transmit a response packet as a response to the command packet to the master 100 . The response packet is a signal for reporting to the master 100 that the slave 200 has succeeded in receiving the command packet wirelessly transmitted from the master 100 .

3 is an exemplary timing chart for explaining a process in which the master 100 of FIG. 1 wirelessly collects response packets from a plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N. For the purpose of distinguishing response packets from the N slaves (200_1 to 200_N), codes RP_1 to RP_N are sequentially assigned to the N response packets.

3 and 4, for the purpose of distinguishing response packets from the N slaves 200_1 to 200_N, codes RP_1 to RP_N are sequentially assigned to the N response packets. 3 and 4 , a time point T10 may indicate a start time of an arbitrary period, and T20 may indicate a start time of a next period. In addition, it is assumed that the time interval ΔT _cyc of each period is divided into N or more time slots, among which N time slots are sequentially allocated to the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N.

At a time point T10 , the master 100 wirelessly transmits a command packet CP1 to the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N. The master 100 may wirelessly transmit the command packet CP1 with a predetermined first signal strength. The command packet CP1 may be collectively transmitted from the master 100 to the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N through a broadcasting method. The command packet CP1 may include the first data D11 and the second data D12 , and may further include the third data D13 . The first data D11 of the command packet CP1 indicates whether the command packet is first transmitted by the master 100 in the current period. For example, the fact that the first data D11 has a first value (eg, 0) indicates that the corresponding command packet is transmitted first in the current period. The second data D12 of the command packet CP1 includes requests for the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N. The request is for requesting execution of a specific function (eg, voltage measurement, cell balancing) from a slave belonging to the second group. The third data D13 of the command packet CP1 includes IDs of all of the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N.

Each of the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N wirelessly transmits a response packet RP in a time slot allocated thereto when receiving the command packet CP1 wirelessly.

When i = 1 to N, the slave 200_i wirelessly transmits a response packet RP_i in an i-th time slot among N or more time slots. The response packet RP_i includes an ith ID previously allocated to the slave 200_i and ith battery information indicating the state of the battery module 20_i. The response packet RP_i may be wirelessly transmitted with a predetermined second signal strength or a reference signal strength pre-allocated to the slave 200_i according to a broadcasting method. Accordingly, the response packet RP_i may be received not only by the master 100 but also by other slaves (eg, 200_i-1 or 200_i+1) other than the slave 200_i.

When k = 1 to N-1, the k+1th slave 200_k+1, from the time when the command packet CP1 is received, for a predetermined time or until the time slot allocated to it is reached, itself Wait for reception of a response packet (eg, RP_k) from at least one slave (eg, 200_k) assigned an ID higher than the ID of , and then wirelessly transmit the k+1th response packet (RP_k+1) is composed

When the k+1th slave 200_k+1 succeeds in receiving the kth response packet RP_k, the k+1th response packet RP_k+1 includes the kth ID, kth battery information, and k+1 ID and k+1th battery information. When the k+1th slave (200_k+1) succeeds in receiving a response packet other than the kth response packet (RP_k) (eg, RP_k-1), the k+1th response packet (RP_k+1) is It may further include k-1 ID and k-1th battery information.

On the other hand, when the k+1th slave 200_k+1 fails to receive the kth response packet RP_k, the k+1th response packet RP_k+1 is the k+1th ID and the k+1th battery information, but does not include kth ID and kth battery information.

The N-th slave 200_N may wirelessly transmit the N-th response packet RP_N twice or more. For example, the N-th slave 200_N wirelessly transmits the N-th response packet RP_N first as a response to the command packet CP1, and then wirelessly retransmits the N-th response packet RP_N one or more times with a time difference. have. Alternatively, when the N-1 th slave 200_N-1 wirelessly transmits the N-1 th response packet (RP_N-1) and then receives the N th response packet RP_N, the additional response packet RPA_N- 1) can be transmitted wirelessly. The additional response packet RPA_N-1 may include an N-th ID and N-th battery information, and may further include an N-1 th ID and N-1 th battery information. The additional response packet RPA_N-1 may be wirelessly transmitted with a predetermined second signal strength or a reference signal strength pre-allocated to the slave 200_N-1.

The master 100 scans the response packets RP_1 to RP_N from the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N for a predetermined time ΔT1 from the time point T10. In the following, when the master 100 succeeds in receiving the response packets RP_1 to RP_N from the first to Nth slaves 200_1 to 200_N within a predetermined time ΔT1 from the time T10, a plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N) may end the process of wirelessly collecting the first to Nth battery information. Accordingly, within the period from the time point T10 until the time point T20 arrives, each of the first to Nth battery information is wirelessly transmitted to the master 100 at least twice, so that the master 100 is selected from among the first to Nth battery information. It is possible to reduce the possibility of failing to receive at least one.

3 exemplifies a situation in which the master 100 has received all of the response packets RP_1 to RP_N within a predetermined time ΔT1 from the time point T10. Hereinafter, an operation when the master 100 fails to receive at least one of the response packets RP_1 to RP_N within a predetermined time ΔT1 from the time point T10 will be described with reference to FIG. 4 .

4 is another exemplary timing chart for explaining a process in which the master 100 of FIG. 1 wirelessly collects response packets from a plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N.

Referring to FIG. 4 , the master 100 wirelessly transmits the command packet CP1 at time T10 and then, for a predetermined time ΔT1, scans response packets RP_1 to RP_N from a plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N. This is the same as in FIG. 3 .

However, within a predetermined time (ΔT1) from the time point T10, the master 100 receives the response packets (RP_1, RP_3 ~ RP_N-2, RP_N) from the slaves (200_1, 200_3 ~ 200_N-2, 200_N), whereas the slave It is different from the situation in FIG. 3 in that the response packets RP_2 and RP_N-1 are not received from (200_2, 200_N-1). Of course, since the response packets RP_2 and RP_N-1 can be wirelessly transmitted in a broadcasting manner, other slaves (eg, 200_3, 200_N) may have received the response packets RP_2 and RP_N-1.

Then, the master 100 sets the slaves 200_1, 200_3 to 200_N-2, 200_N to which IDs included in the received response packets (RP_1, RP_3 to RP_N-2, RP_N) are assigned as the first group, and , among the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N, the remaining slaves 200_2 and 200_N-1 that are not set as the first group may be set as the second group. In addition, the master 100 uses, as an index, the lowest (ie, lowest) ID among the IDs of the slaves 200_2 and 200_N-1 set as the second group, and a lookup table (refer to '700' in FIG. 7 ) ), a gain value may be determined (see step S645 of FIG. 6 and step S845 of FIG. 8 ).

At time point T11, only the two slaves 200_2 and 200_N-1 are set as the second group, while the remaining slaves 200_1, 200_3 to 200_N-2, and 200_N are set as the first group. At time point T11, the master 100 wirelessly transmits the command packet CP2. The master 100 may wirelessly transmit the command packet CP2 with a predetermined first signal strength or a first amplified signal strength. The first amplified signal strength may be greater than the first signal strength. The command packet CP2 may include the first data D21 , the second data D22 , and the third data D23 , and may further include the fourth data D24 . The first data D21 of the command packet CP2 has a second value (eg, 1), indicating that the corresponding command packet is for retrying a wireless connection with the second group. The second data D22 of the command packet CP2 includes a request for the slaves 200_2 and 200_N-1 set as the second group. The third data D23 of the command packet CP2 includes IDs of all the slaves 200_2 and 200_N-1 belonging to the second group. The command packet CP2 may be received by all of the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N, but the command packet CP2 includes only the IDs of the two slaves 200_2 and 200_N-1 belonging to the second group. The slaves 200_1, 200_3 to 200_N-2, and 200_N set in one group may erase the command packet CP2 from its own memory device.

On the other hand, when each of the slaves 200_2 and 200_N-1 belonging to the second group receives the command packet CP2, the relative ranking can be determined. When the slave 200_2 receives the command packet CP2 , there is no ID having a higher rank than its ID among all IDs included in the third data D23 of the command packet CP2 , so the rank of its own ID is determined to be the highest. When the slave 200_N-1 receives the command packet CP2, among all IDs included in the third data D23 of the command packet CP2, the slave 200_N-1 has one ID having a higher priority than its own ID. It can be determined that the ID is the second highest.

The slave 200_2 transmits the response packet RP_2' to the master 100 at the timing (ie, the first time slot) associated with the relative rank of its ID. The response packet RP_2' may be the same as the response packet RP_2.

The slave 200_N-1 receives a response packet (RP_2') from the slave 200_2 to which an ID higher than its ID is assigned until the timing (ie, the second time slot) associated with the relative rank of its ID is reached. ) can be queued. The slave 200_N-1 transmits the response packet RP_N-1' to the master 100 upon receiving the response packet RP_2'. The response packet RP_N-1' may include an N-1 th ID and N-1 th battery information along with the second ID and second battery information included in the response packet RP_2'. Of course, the response packet RP_N-1' may further include an N-2 th ID and N-2 th battery information.

Each of the two slaves 200_2 and 200_N-1 may wirelessly transmit response packets RP_2' and RP_N-1' with a predetermined second signal strength or a reference signal strength assigned to them. When i = 1 to N, the reference signal strength allocated to the slave 200_i may be greater than the reference signal strength allocated to the slave 200_i-1. That is, a relatively large reference signal strength may be allocated to a slave having a relatively long communication distance with the master 100 .

For a predetermined time (ΔT2) from the time point T11, the master 100 scans response packets RP_2' and RP_N-1' from the slaves 200_2 and 200_N-1 belonging to the second group. ΔT2 may be equal to, shorter than, or greater than ΔT1. It is assumed that the master 100 receives response packets RP_2' and RP_N-1' from all the slaves 200_2 and 200_N-1 set to the second group within a predetermined time ΔT2 from the time point T11. Then, the master 100 sets the slaves 200_2 and 200_N-1 from the second group to the first group, and wirelessly collects first to Nth battery information from the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N. can be terminated. Accordingly, each of the first to Nth battery information is wirelessly transmitted to the master 100 two or more times, thereby reducing the possibility that the master 100 fails to receive at least one of the first to Nth battery information. .

On the other hand, if at least one (eg, RP_2) of the response packets (RP_2', RP_N-1') is not received within a predetermined time (ΔT2) from the time point T11, the master 100 controls the slave (eg, 200_N-1) While changing to one group, the slave (eg, 200_2) may be maintained as the second group. Then, the master 100 may wirelessly transmit a new command packet in order to induce the remaining slaves (eg, 200_2) in the second group to wirelessly transmit the response packet RP_2' again.

Hereinafter, a 'first command packet' refers to a command packet having a first value as first data, and a 'second command packet' refers to a command packet having a second value as first data.

5 is a flowchart illustrating a method for the master 100 to wirelessly collect response packets from a plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N according to the first embodiment of the present invention. The method of FIG. 5 may be executed every predetermined period.

1 to 5 , in step S510 , the master 100 wirelessly transmits a first command packet. The first command packet may be wirelessly transmitted with a predetermined first signal strength. It may include first data and second data, and may further include third data. The first data of the first command packet has a first value indicating that the first command packet is to initially attempt a wireless connection with the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N in the current period. The second data of the first command packet includes data for requesting execution of a specific function (eg, voltage measurement, cell balancing) to the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N. The third data of the first command packet includes IDs of the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N.

When i = 1 to N, when the first data of the first command packet has a first value, the slave 200_i executes a function requested by the second data of the first command packet, and its own A response packet (RP_i) including an ID may be wirelessly transmitted.

In step S520 , the master 100 scans the response packets RP_1 to RP_N from the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N during the first waiting period. That is, the master 100 collects response packets RP_1 to RP_N wirelessly transmitted by the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N from the time when the first command packet is transmitted to the time when a predetermined time has elapsed.

In step S530 , the master 100 classifies each of the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N into one of a first group and a second group. Specifically, the master 100 may classify the slave 200 to which the ID of each response packet scanned during the first waiting period is assigned into the first group, and the remaining slaves 200 into the second group. . That is, the slave 200 that has not transmitted a response packet or has transmitted a response packet that has not been received by the master 100 may be classified into the second group by the master 100 .

In step S540 , the master 100 determines whether at least one of the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N is classified into the second group. That is, the master 100 checks whether at least one slave 200 remains in a state in which a wireless connection with the master 100 is not made in the current cycle. When the value of step S540 is "YES", step S550 proceeds. A value of “NO” in step S540 means that the master 100 is wirelessly connected to all of the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N, so the method can be ended.

In step S550, the master 100 wirelessly transmits a second command packet. The second command packet may be wirelessly transmitted with a predetermined first signal strength. The second command packet includes first data, second data and third data. The first data of the second command packet has a second value indicating that the second command packet is for retrying a wireless connection between the master 100 and the second group. The second data of the second command packet includes data for requesting execution of a specific function to all the slaves 200 belonging to the second group. The third data of the second command packet includes IDs of all the slaves 200 belonging to the second group.

When each of the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N receives the second command packet, in response to the first data of the second command packet having a second value, the third data of the second command packet has an ID of its own Check whether it is included or not. Since the slave 200 belonging to the second group includes its ID in the third data of the second command packet, it executes the function requested by the second data of the second command packet, and a response including its ID The packet is transmitted to the master 100 with a predetermined second signal strength or a reference signal strength pre-assigned to itself. On the other hand, since the slave 200 belonging to the first group does not include its ID in the second data of the second command packet, it does not transmit the response packet and erases the second command packet from its memory device ( That is, the request by the third data of the second command packet may be ignored).

In step S560, the master 100 scans the response packet from the slave 200 classified into the second group during the second waiting period. That is, the master 100 collects response packets wirelessly transmitted by at least one slave 200 belonging to the second group from the time when the second command packet is transmitted to the time when a predetermined time has elapsed.

In step S570, the master 100 classifies each of the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N into one of a first group and a second group. Specifically, the master 100 classifies the slave 200 to which the ID of each response packet scanned during the second waiting period is assigned from the second group to the first group, and the remaining slaves 200 into the second group. can keep After step S570, the method may proceed to step S540.

6 is a flowchart illustrating a method for the master 100 to wirelessly collect response packets from a plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N according to a second embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 7 is a diagram related to the second embodiment A lookup table 700 is shown as an example. The method of FIG. 6 may be executed every predetermined period.

1 to 3, 6 and 7 , in step S610, the master 100 wirelessly transmits a first command packet. The first command packet may be wirelessly transmitted with a predetermined first signal strength. The first command packet may include first data and second data, and may further include third data. The first data of the first command packet has a first value indicating that the first command packet is to initially attempt a wireless connection with the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N in the current period. The second data of the first command packet includes data for requesting execution of a specific function from the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N. The third data of the first command packet includes IDs of the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N.

Each of the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N, when the first data of the first command packet has a first value, executes a function requested by the second data of the first command packet, and includes its ID The response packet may be wirelessly transmitted with a predetermined second signal strength or a reference signal strength pre-assigned to itself.

In step S620 , the master 100 scans response packets from the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N during the first waiting period. That is, the master 100 collects response packets wirelessly transmitted by the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N from the time when the first command packet is transmitted to the time when a predetermined time has elapsed.

In step S630 , the master 100 classifies each of the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N into one of a first group and a second group. Specifically, the master 100 may classify the slave 200 to which the ID of each response packet scanned during the first waiting period is assigned into the first group, and the remaining slaves 200 into the second group. . That is, the slave 200 that has not transmitted a response packet or has transmitted a response packet that has not been received by the master 100 may be classified into the second group by the master 100 .

In step S640 , the master 100 determines whether at least one of the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N is classified into the second group. That is, the master 100 checks whether at least one slave 200 remains in a state in which a wireless connection with the master 100 is not made in the current cycle. If the value of step S640 is "YES", step S645 proceeds. The value of “NO” in step S640 means that the master 100 is wirelessly connected to all of the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N, so the method can be ended.

In step S645 , the master 100 determines a first gain value from the lookup table 700 by using the lowest priority ID among IDs of at least one slave 200 belonging to the second group as an index. Specifically, the lookup table 700 stores a plurality of gain values (G ₁ to G _N ) associated with each of the IDs (S ₁ to S _N ) of the plurality of slaves. At least one of the plurality of gain values G ₁ to G _N is greater than 1. In the lookup table 700 , a relatively large gain value is associated with a relatively low ID. When i = 1 to N, for example, S _i is an ID of the slave 200_i and is related to G _i , and G _i-1 < G _i . If, as in FIG. 3 , when the slave 200_2 and the slave 200_N-1 belong to the second group, since S _N-1 is the lowest priority ID, G _N-1 is determined as the first gain value. .

In step S650, the master 100 wirelessly transmits the second command packet with the first amplified signal strength. The first amplified signal strength is equal to multiplying the first signal strength by the first gain value determined in step S645. The second command packet includes first data, second data and third data. The first data of the second command packet has a second value indicating that the second command packet is for retrying a wireless connection between the master 100 and the second group. The second data of the second command packet includes data for requesting execution of a specific function to all the slaves 200 belonging to the second group. The third data of the second command packet includes IDs of all the slaves 200 belonging to the second group.

When each of the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N receives the second command packet, in response to the first data of the second command packet having a second value, the second data of the second command packet has an ID of its own Check whether it is included or not. Since the slave 200 belonging to the second group includes its ID in the third data of the second command packet, it executes the function requested by the second data of the second command packet, and a response including its ID The packet is transmitted to the master 100 with a predetermined second signal strength or a reference signal strength pre-assigned to itself. On the other hand, since the slave 200 belonging to the first group does not include its ID in the second data of the second command packet, it does not transmit the response packet and erases the second command packet from its memory device ( That is, the request by the third data of the second command packet may be ignored).

In step S660 , the master 100 scans the response packet from the slave 200 classified into the second group during the second waiting period. That is, the master 100 collects response packets wirelessly transmitted by at least one slave 200 belonging to the second group from the time when the second command packet is transmitted to the time when a predetermined time has elapsed.

In step S670, the master 100 classifies each of the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N into one of a first group and a second group. Specifically, the master 100 classifies the slave 200 to which the ID of each response packet scanned during the second waiting period is assigned from the second group to the first group, and the remaining slaves 200 into the second group. can keep After step S670, the method may proceed to step S640.

8 is a flowchart illustrating a method for the master 100 to wirelessly collect response packets from a plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N according to a third embodiment of the present invention. The method of FIG. 8 may be executed every predetermined period. The lookup table 700 shown in FIG. 7 may be referred to by the master 100 in the third embodiment as well as the second embodiment.

1 to 3, 7 and 8 , in step S810, the master 100 wirelessly transmits a first command packet. The first command packet may be wirelessly transmitted with a predetermined first signal strength. The first command packet may include first data and second data, and may further include third data. The first data of the first command packet has a first value indicating that the first command packet is to initially attempt a wireless connection with the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N in the current period. The second data of the first command packet includes data for requesting execution of a specific function from the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N. The third data of the first command packet includes IDs of the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N.

Each of the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N, when the first data of the first command packet has a first value, executes a function requested by the second data of the first command packet, and includes its ID The response packet may be wirelessly transmitted with a predetermined second signal strength or a reference signal strength pre-assigned to itself.

In step S820 , the master 100 scans response packets from the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N during the first waiting period. That is, the master 100 collects response packets wirelessly transmitted by the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N from the time when the first command packet is transmitted to the time when a predetermined time has elapsed.

In step S830, the master 100 classifies each of the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N into one of a first group and a second group. Specifically, the master 100 may classify the slave 200 to which the ID of each response packet scanned during the first waiting period is assigned into the first group, and the remaining slaves 200 into the second group. . That is, the slave 200 that has not transmitted a response packet or has transmitted a response packet that has not been received by the master 100 may be classified into the second group by the master 100 .

In step S840 , the master 100 determines whether at least one of the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N is classified into the second group. That is, the master 100 checks whether at least one slave 200 remains in a state in which a wireless connection with the master 100 is not made in the current cycle. When the value of step S840 is "YES", step S845 proceeds. Since the value of “NO” in step S840 means that the master 100 is wirelessly connected to all of the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N, the method may be terminated.

In step S845, the master 100 determines a second gain value. The second gain value is determined from the lookup table 700 by using the lowest-order ID among IDs of at least one slave 200 belonging to the second group as an index. Specifically, the lookup table 700 stores a plurality of gain values (G ₁ to G _N ) associated with each of the IDs (S ₁ to S _N ) of the plurality of slaves. At least one of the plurality of gain values G ₁ to G _N is greater than 1. In the lookup table 700 , a relatively large gain value is associated with a relatively low ID. When i = 1 to N, for example, S _i is an ID of the slave 200_i and is related to G _i , and G _i-1 < G _i . If, as in FIG. 3 , when the slave 200_2 and the slave 200_N-1 belong to the second group, since S _N-1 is the lowest priority ID, G _N-1 is determined as the first gain value. .

In step S850, the master 100 wirelessly transmits a second command packet. The second command packet may be wirelessly transmitted with a predetermined first signal strength or a first amplified signal strength. The first amplified signal strength may be determined in the manner described above with reference to FIGS. 6 and 7 . The second command packet includes first data, second data, and third data, and further includes fourth data. The first data of the second command packet has a second value indicating that the second command packet is for retrying a wireless connection between the master 100 and the second group. The second data of the second command packet includes data for requesting execution of a specific function to all the slaves 200 belonging to the second group. The third data of the second command packet includes IDs of all the slaves 200 belonging to the second group. The second command packet further includes fourth data. The fourth data of the second command packet indicates the second gain value determined in step S845.

When each of the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N receives the second command packet, in response to the first data of the second command packet having a second value, the third data of the second command packet has an ID of its own Check whether or not it is included. The slave 200 belonging to the second group may execute a function requested by the second data of the second command packet because its ID is included in the third data of the second command packet.

In addition, the slave 200 belonging to the second group multiplies the second gain value indicated by the fourth data of the second command packet by a predetermined second signal strength or a reference signal strength previously assigned to the slave 200 to obtain the fourth signal strength. decide Next, the slave 200 belonging to the second group transmits a response packet including its ID to the master 100 with the second amplified signal strength. On the other hand, since the slave 200 belonging to the first group does not include its ID in the second data of the second command packet, it does not transmit the response packet and erases the second command packet from its memory device ( That is, the request by the third data of the second command packet may be ignored).

In step S860, the master 100 scans the response packet from the slave 200 classified into the second group during the second waiting period. That is, the master 100 collects response packets wirelessly transmitted by at least one slave 200 belonging to the second group from the time when the second command packet is transmitted to the time when a predetermined time has elapsed.

In step S870, the master 100 classifies each of the plurality of slaves 200_1 to 200_N into one of a first group and a second group. Specifically, the master 100 classifies the slave 200 to which the ID of each response packet scanned during the second waiting period is assigned from the second group to the first group, and the remaining slaves 200 into the second group. can keep After step S870, the method may proceed to step S840.

The embodiment of the present invention described above is not implemented only through the apparatus and method, and may be implemented through a program for realizing a function corresponding to the configuration of the embodiment of the present invention or a recording medium in which the program is recorded. The implementation can be easily implemented by those skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains from the description of the above-described embodiments.

In the above, although the present invention has been described with reference to limited embodiments and drawings, the present invention is not limited thereto and will be described below with the technical idea of the present invention by those of ordinary skill in the art to which the present invention pertains. Of course, various modifications and variations are possible within the scope of equivalents of the claims.

In addition, since the present invention described above can be various substitutions, modifications and changes within the scope that does not depart from the technical spirit of the present invention for those of ordinary skill in the art to which the present invention pertains, the above-described embodiments and attachments It is not limited by the illustrated drawings, and all or part of each embodiment may be selectively combined and configured so that various modifications may be made.

10: battery pack
20: battery module
30: radio control system
100: master
200: slave

Claims (13)

In the wireless control system for the first to Nth battery module,
a master configured to wirelessly transmit a first command packet; and
Including first to N-th slaves to which first to N-th IDs are sequentially assigned,
When the first slave receives the first command packet, it generates first battery information indicating the state of the first battery module, and sends a first response packet including the first ID and the first battery information. configured to wirelessly transmit to the second slave to the N-th slave and the master;
Upon receiving the first command packet, the k+1th slave generates k+1th battery information indicating the state of the k+1th battery module, and generates the k+1th battery information until the time slot allocated to it is reached. After waiting for reception of the kth response packet from the kth slave, it is configured to wirelessly transmit the k+1th response packet to the remaining slaves and the master except for itself,
When the k+1th slave succeeds in receiving the kth response packet, the k+1th response packet includes the kth ID, the kth battery information, the k+1th ID, and the k+1th response packet. contains battery information;
N is a natural number greater than or equal to 2,
k is a natural number greater than or equal to 1 and less than or equal to N-1;
According to claim 1,
The N-th slave is
After wirelessly transmitting the Nth response packet, the wireless control system is configured to wirelessly retransmit the Nth response packet one or more times.
According to claim 1,
The N-1th slave is
configured to wirelessly transmit an additional response packet when receiving the N-th response packet after the N-1 th response packet is wirelessly transmitted,
The additional response packet is
Including the N-th ID and the N-th battery information, a wireless control system.
According to claim 1,
When the k+1th slave fails to receive the kth response packet, the k+1th response packet includes the k+1th ID and the k+1th battery information, the kth ID and The k-th battery information does not include, a radio control system.
According to claim 1,
The master is
After the first command packet is wirelessly transmitted, each slave to which an ID included in each received response packet is assigned is set as the first group, while the remaining slaves not set as the first group are set as the second group. configured, a radio control system.
6. The method of claim 5,
The master is
configured to wirelessly transmit a second command packet when at least one of the first to N-th slaves is set to the second group,
The second command packet includes IDs of all slaves set in the second group, the radio control system.
7. The method of claim 6,
The master is
wirelessly transmits the first command packet at a first signal strength;
configured to wirelessly transmit the second command packet at a first amplified signal strength;
wherein the first amplified signal strength is greater than the first signal strength.
7. The method of claim 6,
The k+1th slave is
and wirelessly retransmit the k+1th response packet when the k+1th ID is included in the second command packet.
9. The method of claim 8,
The k+1th slave is
when the k+1th ID is included in the second command packet, determining the relative rank of the k+1th ID among all IDs included in the second command packet;
and wirelessly retransmit the k+1th response packet in the time slot assigned to the relative rank of the k+1th ID.
10. A battery pack comprising the radio control system according to any one of claims 1 to 9.
In the method for the master to wirelessly collect first to Nth battery information indicating the state of the first to Nth battery modules from the first to Nth slaves to which the first to Nth IDs are sequentially assigned,
wirelessly transmitting, by the master, a first command packet to the first to Nth slaves;
When the first slave receives the first command packet, it generates the first battery information, and transmits a first response packet including the first ID and the first battery information to the second slave to the N-th slave and wirelessly transmitting to the master; and
When the k+1th slave receives the first command packet, it generates the k+1th battery information, and receives the kth response packet from the kth slave until the time slot allocated to it is reached After waiting for, including the step of wirelessly transmitting the k+1th response packet to the remaining slaves and the master except for itself,
When the k+1th slave succeeds in receiving the kth response packet, the k+1th response packet includes the kth ID, the kth battery information, the k+1 ID, and the k+1th response packet. contains battery information;
N is a natural number greater than or equal to 2,
k is a natural number greater than or equal to 1 and not greater than or equal to N-1.
12. The method of claim 11,
After the N-th slave wirelessly transmits the N-th response packet, the method further comprising the step of wirelessly retransmitting the N-th response packet one or more times.
12. The method of claim 11,
When the N-1 th slave receives the N th response packet after the N-1 th response packet is wirelessly transmitted, the method further comprising: wirelessly transmitting an additional response packet,
The additional response packet is
and the Nth ID and the Nth battery information.

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